Paula Geraghty reports on Eamonn McCann’s Westminster campaign.
Veteran campaigner and SWP member, Eamonn McCann stood in the Foyle constituency in the Westminster elections as a People Before Profit Alliance candidate.
McCann’s campaign was launched amid poetry and song, with its own campaign song by Paddy Nash and the Happy Enchiladas declaring a new manifesto for an alternative Ulster “put the people before the profit, put the need before the greed, and we’ll find a new direction beyond the Orange and the Green”.
I was among the activists from around the country that found their way to Derry to support Eamonn’s campaign. I leafleted the Brandywell with a new bunch of very friendly people who seemed to know everyone on the street. That evening we canvassed the Loyalist working class Caw Estate and Nelson Drive where we received a warm response. People Before Profit were the only party in Derry which canvassed on both sides of the sectarian divide.
The turnout was down 12.5% so the final count of 2,936 or 7.8% of the total poll was a very good result for a first run by PBPA. This is double the vote for Eamonn McCann from when he stood before as a SEA (Socialist and Environmentalist Alliance) candidate. This bodes quite well for the looming Assembly elections.
If you want to catch a bit of the buzz, download the campaign song for free online at – paddynash.co.uk/web/music.asp
